


Second Chances

by Kionos



Category: Angel: the Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Community: comment_fic, Gen, Kid Fic, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-13
Updated: 2014-04-08
Packaged: 2018-01-15 13:05:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1305844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kionos/pseuds/Kionos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lindsey tries to save Angel, but at what cost? Can AI deal with consequences of Lindsey's sacrifice? Will Angel be able to save Lindsey's innocence?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Box

**Author's Note:**

> This was lonely prompt over at comment-fic. I had wanted to do this for awhile, the idea floating around in my head, but couldn't figure out where to take the story. When I saw this prompt it hit me. However its waaaayyy too long for a comment fic so well...you know how it goes. Hope you enjoy!

Angel had no idea how he ended up here. Sure he could recall the events that led up to his arrival, but he didn’t know how he could have been stupid enough to actually do this. He was fairly sure his brain still worked, so how it failed to get him out of this he had no idea. He was standing in a warehouse he was pretty sure was about to collapse on itself waiting that that damn lawyer. 

Lindsey had called him earlier rambling about how sorry he was and how he could explain it all he just couldn’t do it over the phone. Angel thought he’d been drunk dialed at first, but soon doubted it. The boys tears so fat he could hear them hit his cheeks through the receiver. Reminding him just how young the boy really was. His bleeding heart had taken over his mouth at that point promising to meet him. 

Now he was here waiting. He’d shown up earlier than planned because he expected a trap. Whether Lindsey intended or not he’d probably ended up regretting helping the boy. Again. He’d found nothing but a dead rat and a graffiti mural that made him think L.A. should offer free counseling. He had just about given up waiting when he heard the rumble of an old truck. He waited in the shadows for the driver to enter. As soon as the truck door was open though he could smell the salty brine of tears and that musky sunshine smell that was uniquely Lindsey. 

He watched as Lindsey got out of the truck his strong legs clad in tight faded denim instead of too loose Armani dress pants. His small stature looking smaller in his four layers of shirts. His mocha brown locks curling into some adorable mess, tamed only by the navy blue beanie pulled down over his ears. He watched as the boy leaned over the bed of the truck to lift up an ornate wooden box and set it down in front of the truck. It looked like Lindsey was about to get settled on his front bumper and wait so Angel stepped out of the shadows. Scaring the shit out the boy when he bellowed his greeting perhaps a little too loudly. 

“Angel.”

“What are we doing here Lindsey.”

“The story’s pretty long so I’ll spare the details you don’t want. That box has something to do with the you. They think it will make you dark somehow. I don’t know for sure, but your Watcher should be able to read the scriptures. They’re more worried about the failures of Nathan Reed right now to notice a supernova of the Sun, but that won’t last long. Get it figured quick and don’t have it when they come looking for it.”

“How’d you get it?”

“Like I said they’re distracted. But I’ve got go now before…”

“Before what McDonald? Before we find you again?”. Angel turned to see the undead Holland Manners approaching the from some dark corner of the warehouse. “Foolish dog never could quite get rid of the conscience. Never would have guessed a creature like you would have a soul, much less a conscience, but for once your betrayal has suited us. Would you two like to know what that box does? Its trades present Angel for a weaker Angel from the past. And now it’s here with Angel so conveniently. Your help will be rewarded Lindsey, when we are able to redo the obedience spell Reed screwed up, will give you Angel. Tell me Angel you a cat person?”

“Lindsey what the hell is he talking about?”

“Angel! Leave!”

“No! Answer me! You’ve been under an obedience spell this whole time? Why didn’t you tell me I could have helped”

“It’s simply Angel. Lindsey here was told not to tell or allude too in any way that he was with us unwillingly. You do know what he is right? Now that our spells are gone you can smell it now can’t you?”

And he could. He’d thought it the change it clothing or the myriad of emotions Lindsey never showed before, but now it was stronger. He smelled like an animal. That fresh natural smell of clean fur. He didn’t smell like soaps or perfumes or hair products like most humans did. He was even more confused because the boy in front of him was a human boy, and werewolves didn’t smell like animals they smelled like demons. Plus Manners had alluded Lindsey was cat. “What are you Lindsey?”

“A Lycanthrope. Tiger.” The reply was so small even his vampiric hearing barely caught it. He’d read stories of lycanthropes when he was young, he honestly believed them to mythological or at the very least extinct. He was focused on Lindsey looking for any sign of falsehood, so focused in fact he failed to notice even remember Manners. 

Holland had the box open before they could stop him. A green and blue light arose from the opening gaining in size and intensity acting as a siren, holding Angel there as it came to pull him through. After several moments of screaming and pulling Angel stood stock still waiting for this awful fate. Holland had disappeared into the darkness somewhere. Without any idea of what else he could do, Lindsey jumped into the light. 

The effect instantaneous, Angel’s focus came back just as the light collapsed around Lindsey consuming him. The screams were horrifying , but thankfully cut off as the Lindsey disappeared and the light reduced itself back into the box. For several moments nothing happened. Scared and confused Angel picked up the box and began the trek to his Plymouth. Settling the box safely into his passenger seat he drove back to the hotel.


	2. The Ritual

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter we discover what the box is and what happened to Lindsey.

“Oh my god! He came to us for help! He was so scared! you said he was terrified when he came to us. Why didn’t the PTB send me a vision? We coulda helped him”

“Cordelia, Angel. We couldn’t have known. But we can make sure his sacrifice wasn’t a waste. The scriptures on the box are actually Egyptian so it should not take too long to decipher. Perhaps it will help us get Lindsey back. If possible.”

Gunn arrived the Thai take out about two and half hours later. Cordelia dove for the food like a starved lion while Angel tried his damnedest to get Wesley to eat something. He gave up by the time the food was cold, so he ate it himself just to have something to do. He felt so useless unable to help. 

With a full belly and a load of guilt large enough to exhaust a god, Cordy headed to bed demanding to be awakened when Wesley found something. Gunn tried to get some information about the box from some outside sources. Angel hadn’t been able to make his body move from his stupor across form Wesley. 

About five hours after the warehouse incident Wesely cleared his throat the way he always did when he was trying to gather his thoughts. The sound causes Angel to nearly jump up with eager hopefulllness, following Wesley out of the office he waiting with agitated patience for Gunn to wake Cordy. When everyone was gathered in the lobby Angel finally asked.   
“What did it say?”

“Bad news? Lindsey’s body, energy and soul were consumed in the light. Good news? The box will reconstruct the essence into a previous Lindsey from the past. It would have an excellent tactic to use on Angel. You would be decidely more vulnerable to their games without the support and commitment you have now. ”

“So we could bring lawyer boy back like he was last night? Seems solid.”

“No. I want to bring him back the way he was before Wolfram & Hart got to him. He deserves a chance. He never got that first round.The used an obedience spell so he couldn’t refuse. He’s been trapped in his own body for who knows long he’s been like that. Aren’t some of the spells able to even control emotions and preferences?”

“Yes, these spells can be very horrific and I’d imagine Wolfram & Hart would get the worst. I agree with you Angel he does deserve to be free of them, but is it our place to take away years of his life?”

“Who else is there to decide?”

“Then we are all agreed? If so, I can perform the ritual immediately.”

After everyone came to the solemn decision to bring back an innocent Lindsey the set about preparing for the ritual under Wesley’s instruction. Gunn went out on a supply run while Angel and Cordy prepared as much as they could for the new, old Lindsey.


	3. Little Lindsey

CHAPTER THREE

 

They were all gathered around in a circle as Wesley read the summoning inscription . They had spent another two hours arguing over the correct wording, deciding on asking for Lindsey before the influence of W&H. Angel knew they’d recruited Lindsey in law school so was expecting something like 23 yr. old. Cordelia and Gunn were pretty much expecting the same but Wesley knew better than to hope for that. 

He had found lycanthropes fascinating in his studies and had made research somewhat of a hobby. Many ancient journals at the Watcher’s Council had recorded Lycans as supernatural servants. Born to help the greatest of heroes. Alexander the Great, King Arthur, Heracles, Perseus, and many more. Powerful creatures with so much power that they could control nature. Not manipulate it like warlocks, but control like a god. It was how they were able to change their physical form so dramatically.

They were powerful creatures, the power increasing exponentially with age so he knew that for W&H to have been strong enough to enslave one, it would have been done when he was fairly young.. He was expecting a pre-adolescent, but wouldn’t be surprised to receive a toddler. What Wesley was concerned about was how they were going to deal with a child. As a noble man he wanted to believe he was offering someone a missed childhood, but as a scholar it didn’t matter, this was a once in millennium chance. 

The ritual was anticlimactic so say the least. The box kinda levitated a bit, but nothing else. After the theatrics of the warehouse, Angel was convinced it hadn’t worked. They were all surprised however to hear a small purring sound coming from inside the box.. Reaching forward Angel lifted off the lid of the box to find a Siberian Tiger cub, better described as ball of stripped fur with eyes. The little cub immediately jumped into Angel’s waiting arms snuggling its nose into the crook of his elbow. 

Angel happily volunteered for ‘keep the tiger cub/5 year old busy’ while Wesley explained to the others his theory. Pulling out his most collective text on Lycanthropy biology and legend, he tried to answer all of their questions thoroughly. 

“That’s…not what I expected. How come he keeps changing back and forth? One minute he’s a cute tiger smacking at the fringe on the couch, the nest he’s a five year old trying to lift the broad sword. ”

“Lycans usually have trouble controlling their shifts when they’re real young.”

“Real young? Thought we was asking for pre-law lawyer boy. Why’d we get a kitten?”

“He’s so cute!” Cordelia wrestled her way around the guys and snatched the cub out of Angel’s hands. Cradling the cub like she would a human child, almost immediately Lindsey shifted,. His small thin fingers grasping Cordy’s blouse as if he were about to fall. 

“he’s so thin. Don’t look like he’s eaten in…well ever. I’ve seen street kids better fed than that boy.”

“Lindsey said his family was really poor. I hadn’t really believed him….or cared. He probably wouldn’t have eaten much, he had a lot of siblings.”

“I think the true horror here is he seems to be perfectly fine with waking up to strangers. What kind of five year old is okay with that?”

“One frequently abandoned with strangers, I would think.”

“Wesley? Why’s he so young? Did they really do this to a baby? They really looked at some adorable child and though ‘let’s ruin his life and destroy his soul’”

“I’m afraid so Cordy.”

“my god.”

They all stared at the boy falling asleep against Cordy’s breasts, his small death grip still bunched in her shirt. He hadn’t really hadn’t been concerned at all with them being strangers. He’d introduced himself in one of his more human moments and that was the acknowledge he’d felt was needed. They had thus introduced themselves between Wesley’s bits of legend and facts. 

It was getting pretty late so Cordy tried to feed the child before they all headed him. Lindsey wasn’t having it though. When he’d finally managed to free himself of Cordy’s attentions he hurried to Gunn, who managed to get some rice into the boy. 

Lindsey was a quiet and well behaved child, if a little hyper. He was extremely respectful. He didn’t seem to really know how to act around Cordy but was playful with the guys. He’d played spaceship with Gunn until Angel could hear his muscles screaming. When Gunn begged for a break Lindsey shifted and began running around with no real direction. Amusing everyone to no end. 

“I know he’s half cat, but we can’t have a naked five year old running around the offices.”

“I’ll pick him out some clothes tomorrow before work. I’m the youngest of all my cousins so I’ve never been able to spoil any one. This will be so much fun!”

“I wanna help. .” Angel added petulantly.

“We will all help care for him Angel, however I think that you and Gunn should prepare a room for him. It seems Lindsey will be staying quite some time..”

“I know…I’ll foot the bill?”

“Done! The sun sets at 7:45 tomorrow. We will be able to hit a few boutiques before everything closes. If we don’t get enough we can do it again in a few days.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

After seeing everyone out and locking the doors, Angel lifted Lindsey off the couch he’d fallen to sleep on and carried him upstairs. Unsure if he’d be safe in another room even if they were cleaned, he laid Lindsey out in his own bed. Slipping one of his t-shirts onto the boy he tucked him in securely and sat in the window to read a few more chapters of his Bronte.


	4. CHAPTER FOUR

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'l like to thank T0nt0n for beta'ing this chapter for you guys. She really helped improve it a great deal.

CHAPTER FOUR

“Watcha doin’ mister Angel?”

“I’m just waiting for you to get up. You hungry lil guy?”

“Little bit, but I can wait til suppertime.”

“You don’t have to wait Lindsey. Cordy wants to take you shopping today so we should get some food in you. There’s some donuts downstairs.”

“What’s a dough nut?”

“You’ve never had a donut?”

“I’m sorry.” The heartbreaking thing was that he actually was sorry and nearly in tears, thinking he’d upset his new guardians. “Are Mama and Daddy on vacation again?”

“Do they go on vacation a lot?” Angel was slightly thrown by the shift in topic, but his time with Dru had him finding his feet pretty quickly.

“Yea usually daddy gets in trouble, then he and Mama go on vacation and Mrs. Walton lets us stay in her barn if we help with the chores. Sometimes I have to go to different people’s houses.”

“What about your siblings?”

“The babies died last year, and everyone else is big enough to take care of ‘em selves, so only I have to stay with people.”

“Oh well, Lindsey, I actually don’t know where your Mama and Daddy went. You came to us in that box, you remember?” He wanted to chastise himself. How the hell was he supposed to explain the Box to a five year old. Lindsey didn’t seem to catch the oddity though. 

“Oh yea, you don’t mind that I’m evil?”

“What? Why would you say you’re evil, Lindsey?”

“That’s what Momma says. She says that Daddy made a deal wit the devil and imma demon. ‘s why I can change into the kitty.” The poor child looked so stricken and upset. Who the hell would tell that sort of thing to a five year old. Hell its hard to take at 240-something.

“Lindsey, you’re not a demon. And I wouldn’t mind if you were; not all demons are evil. In fact, one of my friends is a demon and he sings and runs a club. He’s the nicest guy I’ve ever met. And me, I’m a demon, I save people from the bad guys.”

“Really?! So you’re like Batman? That why you wear the long coat so it looks like a cape?!”

“You think it looks like a cape?” A part of Angel couldn’t help but begrudgingly think that the 26 year old Lindsey had thought the same thing. That kinda irked him a bit. 

“A little bit, but capes are good right? My sissy Jena made me a cape out of one of her dresses. It looked just like Superman’s! It was cool.”

Angel had to chuckle at the kid’s antics. He was so carefree and open, and it pissed him off. If they’d asked for Lindsey right before Wolfram & Hart got to him and they’d gotten this boy, that meant that Wolfram & Hart had enslaved and corrupted this baby. The same baby that sat on his lap studying the buttons on his sleep shirt like they were magic. This baby that never had a donut, played superman, and thought Daddy went on vacation when he got into legal trouble. 

“Well little man, I guess capes are a good thing. But I wear the coat because it protects me from sunlight and cuts from swords.”

“Mr. Angel? How long am I gonna stay wit you?”

“Well, I was kinda thinking about letting you stay here until you grew up. It’d be nice to have a little guy around. What do you say?”

“So, like you’d be my new daddy? Mrs. Walton said if Mama and Daddy went another vacation I’d have to get a new mama and daddy.”

“Well yeah. Kinda like that, but you can just call me Angel. Okay, buddy?”

“Okie Dokie.” The wide smile he was beamed with was so close to sunshine it made his heart swell. Holding this little burst of life made him feel more human. Angel made a vow to himself and the boy that he was going to make sure Wolfram & Hart never touched him again. He didn’t know how, but he had too. 

Just about that point, Angel heard a knock on the room door, just before Cordy came in. The shopping bag hanging off her elbow proved she hadn’t entirely waited for Lindsey to accompany her. Angel almost teased her about it, before realizing the boy’s only clothes was the t-shirt he’d slept in. And really, a magic box couldn’t have brought back a fully clothed Lindsey? Or a Little Tikes gift card? He supposed he should get used to it, maybe it would be kind of fun to have someone to spoil. He’d always enjoyed it before with Kathryn. 

“Hey there Lindsey! Remember me from last night?” All she got was a shy nod and a smile. “I wanted to take you to get some clothes and stuff. Is that okay?” Again, he just gave her another shy nod. “Here you go handsome. I got you some stuff to wear today. You can pick out the rest.”

“Thank ya Ms. Cordy.” He’d said her name, but looked at Angel as if he somehow knew that Cordy had used his credit card to purchase the clothes. 

“Why don’t you go get cleaned up Little Man? Ms. Cordy and I are gonna talk real quick.” He got a big smile and then the tyke took off for the open bathroom, nearly tripping over the hem of his night shirt. 

“He doesn’t seem to be too freaked out with waking up in a strange place with strange people. I’m thankful we don’t have a screaming toddler to deal with, but part of me can’t help but think that we should be.”

“Yea, apparently he spends a lot of time with other people when his dad gets arrested or disappears for any number of reasons. He has older siblings that always end up doing something else, but as the baby, he stayed with someone named Ms. Walton. I told him he was staying here til he grew up and he seemed almost excited about it. I think Ms. Walton was a foster home he went in and out of. She’d explained to him adoption in fairly simple terms. That’s what I told him we did.”

“Well, okay I guess. You think he’ll be okay with me all day? He seems a little hesitant with me.”

“He should be good. But don’t make a big show out of how much something cost or really that you’re spending money at all. He’s already conscious of it. Poor kid’s never even had a donut. I’ve had donuts, and I outdate them!”

“Wow. So did you get some food in him? If not, I’ll take him by the coffee shop Wesley likes. They’ve got little cakes and stuff that would be great for the little one.”

“Yeah, that’ll be nice. Have you seen Wesley today? I haven’t been downstairs yet, so I don’t know whose here. I heard someone come in a few hours ago, I figured it was Wes.”

“Yea it was. He’s researching something I think. He’s got books and like three journals spread out and he’s scribbling like a mad man. He told me to send you down to him when I took over with Lindsey. And wow, that seems so odd to talk about him this way. Wait! How are we going to explain how we know him? What if he finds out about The Box? What do we say to him?”

“I don’t know Cordy. I did mention the Box unintentionally earlier and he didn’t seem to catch it. Just be cautious about it. If he does, I don’t know, make something up and we’ll all go along with it. Honestly, I’m hoping Wesley will be able to come up with something. I hadn’t thought that we’d get a toddler; I’d figured we’d just be going back a few years at most. Maybe we can fast forward or something.”

“I don’t know. He didn’t get much of a childhood. I wouldn’t be so opposed to giving him one.”

“Yeah, me either.”


End file.
